


Budding Companionship

by MysteryFicAnon



Series: Undertale Fic Requests [17]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gardens & Gardening, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Sort Of, Swapfell Papyrus (Undertale), Swapfell Papyrus/Underfell Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Papyrus (Undertale)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:20:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26150095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MysteryFicAnon/pseuds/MysteryFicAnon
Summary: Based on a Tumblr request from @alicedragons: If you've still got room for more prompts, how would you feel about writing something for Fell Pap/Swapfell Pap? Maybe a situation where they're both single, so they hang out together just as buds, but... there's just a little bud of early romance. If that's okay with you of course. Regardless of whether or not you go with it, I hope you have fun with the event! ^_^
Relationships: Papyrus/Papyrus (Undertale)
Series: Undertale Fic Requests [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1436539
Comments: 13
Kudos: 13





	Budding Companionship

**Author's Note:**

  * For [alicedragons](https://archiveofourown.org/users/alicedragons/gifts).



> Thank you to Clehnian for beta reading this, I appreciate it!
> 
> Also: thank you so much to everyone who's interacted with Swimming with the Fish recently!!! I didn't reply to comments because I got a bit overwhelmed by all of them, but I really appreciate it! It's awesome to know so many people like my story :)  
> I hope y'all enjoy this too, even if it's a bit of a rarer pair I really like it :)

Aside from their initial physical similarities, Edge and Slim had more in common than he would have expected. They both enjoyed spicy food, historical documentaries, and surprisingly enough, gardening. Edge had been pleasantly surprised to find that Slim carried a great interest in botany, and was especially fond of his herb garden. There hadn’t been much room to experiment in Edge’s old apartment, but he had patiently answered all of Slim’s questions about the plants. Neither of them had enjoyed the hydroponic greenhouses in the non-Fell universes, so growing plants was very much a new part of the surface world.

Now that Edge and his brother had moved into a house out in New New Home, he had a much larger space to work with. The back yard had been planted in the spring, and the tomatoes were just beginning to turn red. Slim had been coming over to check on them almost every night, and Edge was beginning to think that he was even more excited for the harvest than Edge was.

Edge had never seen Slim so enthusiastic about anything before, and he had to admit that it was rather endearing. He had even begun brewing up jugs of lemonade in the evening, freshly juiced and ready to offer up his evening guest. He never would have expected his friendship with Slim could grow so quickly, but he soon found himself looking forward to their meetings. Even a fifteen minute conversation improved his day, and Edge was glad he had managed to find such an understanding friend.

Of course, when Edge had decided it was time to fill his front yard with summer flowers, it was only natural to invite Slim. He had planned everything out with military precision, consulting numerous sporting good stores’ online catalogues. He had brought home the plants yesterday and watered them, but he wanted to plant them when the sun was out so he could ensure that each one was in a place that suited their individual sunlight requirements.

Slim didn’t seem to mind that Edge had already planned out his garden. He had appeared on Edge’s front steps with a trowel, gardening gloves, and a tank top that said “say ALOE to my little friends”. Although the pun left something to be desired, the little aloe plants with large, sparkling eyes were rather cute. Not that Edge would ever tell him that, if Slim wanted his sense of humour encouraged he could talk to Red.

They had gotten to work quickly, starting with the garden beds by the house. Edge had built a small fence around the tree for the plants that needed shadier environments, but that needed to be filled with soil. Edge tore the weeds out aggressively with his hands, while Slim used his magic to unearth the whole network of roots to make sure they wouldn’t grow back after Edge pulled them.

The dirt got stirred up as they worked, the sun beating down on them. At least there was no risk of a sunburn like there was with squishy humans. Edge had put on a hat, of course, but that was more for style than for protection. He suspected Slim’s wide-brimmed straw hat was another joke,

Actually digging holes and carefully setting the plants in was a more delicate operation, much less physically demanding. Edge began talking to fill the time, knowing Slim would butt in if he wanted to speak. He wasn't afraid to challenge Edge if they had differing opinions, and he was actually quite fun to argue with. Edge launched into a story as he dug a hole for a small rose bush, double-checking the tag next to him to make sure this was the one that would grow tall and begin climbing the house.

“—AND THEN I TOLD THE ATTENDANT THAT IF THEY WERE GOING TO KEEP RECOMMENDING ANNUALS INSTEAD OF PERENNIALS AS IF I COULD NOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE, I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHOP ON MY OWN.” Edge turned around, eager to see what Slim would think of his story.

His jaw dropped as he realized that Slim’s back was turned to him. He was still kneeling in a way that would let him see the road, but he was completely turned away from Edge. His head was bent, and he wouldn’t even see an attack coming.

Edge knew they were friends, but he hadn’t realized that Slim trusted him so much. The tanktop revealed how Slim’s scarred scapulae rolled, a drop of sweat rolling down one of them as he hunched over the ground. His magic was a lovely dusky orange, about the same shade as the Chrysanthemums he had purchased. He was putting himself in a vulnerable position, trusting Edge to protect him from any attacks. The thought of it made his soul stutter in his chest, magic rushing to his cheeks.

“hm?” Slim turned around, looking at Edge with a deceptively innocent expression. That hound dog knew exactly what he was doing,

Still, Edge didn’t want to make the moment awkward. He knew he had a tendency to over-exaggerate small gestures, since everyone in this softer universe was so touchy-feely. Even if Slim was from a fell-verse, he might not realize how significant this was for Edge. He had to play it cool.

“AH, YOU MIGHT WANT TO MAKE THAT HOLE A BIT DEEPER. IF THE PLANT IS BELOW THE SURFACE LEVEL OF THE SOIL, THEN IT NATURALLY ENCOURAGES WATER TO POOL THERE AND FEED THE ROOTS WHEN IT RAINS.”

“oh, okay.” Slim nodded, shovelling a bit more dirt out.

He had somehow smeared dirt on his cheekbone, making his pale grey bones stand out even more. Since they would be gardening for at least another hour, Edge decided there was no point in telling him just yet. After all, they would be getting dirtier before they would get a chance to clean up.

Still, it didn’t feel right to end the conversation there. Edge’s soul still felt funny, but he wasn’t quite sure how to express it. He decided to settle for an earnest thanks. “I APPRECIATE YOUR HELP, SLIM. I COULD HAVE DONE THIS ON MY OWN, BUT THE WORK IS CERTAINLY MORE ENJOYABLE WITH YOU HERE.”

“ah, thanks for inviting me!” Slim gave Edge one of those rare smiles, one where his whole face seemed to light up and his shoulders straightened out of their usual slump. “i know it’s probably annoying to have to explain all this, but plants are just really cool, y’know?”

“NONSENSE. YOU ARE WELCOME HERE ANY TIME AND YOU KNOW IT.” Edge patted Slim with his elbow, since his gloves were absolutely filthy.

“thanks.” Slim mumbled, turning away again. The orange magic from his blush was clearly visible, reflected in the brim of his hat.

“IT’S NO PROBLEM, SLIM.”

Edge turned back to his own hole, hiding his growing smile. Slim could be quite a shy monster, but that was alright. There was no need to push their relationship and explore these feelings right away. Edge had time to coax him out of his shell, and he had a feeling that if he did, Slim would bloom into something even more beautiful.


End file.
